Free Hit in Cricket: The Rule Explained, and How a Batter Can Still Be Out

A free hit is the delivery that follows a no-ball in limited-overs cricket. The batter can swing freely, because they cannot be out in most of the usual ways. It is one of the most exciting moments in a T20 match, and one of the most misunderstood.

When is a free hit awarded?

In ODIs and T20 Internationals, every no-ball is followed by a free hit. That includes front-foot no-balls, waist-high full tosses, and no-balls for having too many fielders outside the circle. Free hits were first introduced for front-foot no-balls in ODIs in 2007 and extended to all no-balls in 2015.

Test cricket has no free hits. A no-ball there gives one extra run and an extra delivery, but no special protection for the batter.

How can a batter be out on a free hit?

On a free hit, the batter cannot be out bowled, caught, LBW, stumped or hit wicket. They can still be out in the ways that do not depend on the bowler beating the bat:

• Run out, if they are short of their ground while running.
• Obstructing the field, which since 2017 also covers handling the ball.
• Hit the ball twice.

That is why batters sometimes stand still after a mistimed shot on a free hit: running a risky single is the one way they can lose their wicket.

Can the fielding side change the field?

No, with one exception. The fielders must stay where they were for the no-ball. If the batters changed ends on the no-ball, because they took a single, a new batter is on strike and the captain may reset the field for that batter.

What if the free hit is also a no-ball or a wide?

• If the free-hit delivery is a no-ball, another free hit follows.
• If it is a wide, the free hit carries over to the next ball, because a wide is not a legal delivery.

In theory a bowler can concede several free hits in a row, and it has happened in televised matches.

Can the ball hit the stumps on a free hit?

Yes. If the ball bowls the batter, they are not out, and the ball stays live. The batters can run, and any runs they complete count as byes, because the ball did not touch the bat.

Why the rule exists

The free hit punishes bowlers for overstepping. One extra run used to be a small price, especially in the final overs of a T20 match. A free hit turns a no-ball into a real risk of conceding a boundary, so bowlers work much harder on their run-up.

For the full list of ways to be dismissed, see our cricket rules guide, and for how fielding limits work, read cricket fielding positions.